Silence
by kbeto
Summary: "Silence [ˈsaɪləns] noun. Refusal or failure to speak, communicate, etc., when expected." Danny was always getting himself into fights or some sort of trouble, leaving his mum discontent. Could a new boy in his school help him change his behaviour? Kid!Flones, possibly the tamest thing I ever wrote. Rated Kplus because I'm never sure. Table #1, entry #10.


_Disclaimer: I make no money out of this. Everything belongs to their rightful owners and I'm just here bawling on the floor with feelings._

_A/N: Three down, more seven to go! Obviously, I got inspired by the sudden wave of kid!fics we're having on the JML tag. :D_

Silence

"I can't believe that's the second time they summon here because of your misbehaviour this month, Daniel," Mrs. Jones gave her young son a stern look through the rear view mirror. Although they had agreed on her calling him just 'Danny', the name 'Daniel' always came up whenever she was upset about something the kid had done. "And it's just the first week of the month! What were you thinking?"

"But muuuuum–"

"Don't you 'muuuuum' me, young lad," she interrupted his whining with the same dragged vowel, turning the engine of her car on, getting ready to leave the spot she parked near the school they left moments ago.

Danny wasn't really what you could call a bad kid, but he surely had a few anger management issues, reason why he was staring out the window with a fat lip, and his clothes unruly and dirtied. It wasn't even him who started the fight, how could it be fair that he had to be punished after hearing that obnoxious Craig Smith say something nasty about Dougie, his best mate?

"_I don't regret that punch,"_ he tried to smile, the sudden movement making his face hurt a bit.

"_Violence is never the answer"_, _"You should have told an adult"_, _"Why are you always getting yourself in trouble?"_ were just some of the many lines in Mrs. Jones' lecture on their ride back home. It was settled that Danny wouldn't get to play any video game next weekend and would stay grounded till the next week, meaning his sleepover at Dougie's was now a no more.

"Straight to the bathroom, you need a good bath and clean clothes," his mum unlocked the front door, and he let himself in with slumped shoulders. Not much he could do, when he knew he was utterly defeated against her authority as a parent.

~#~

"Too bad you couldn't go last week, I almost died of boredom without you," Dougie smiled at his equally blue-eyed friend. "My sister is annoying like... when you can't make a cartridge work on your video game!"

"Don't say that, I didn't got to play any," Danny sighed, taking his usual spot. "I'll try to stay out of trouble this week or Mum is going to sell mine!"

From the surprised sound that escaped Dougie's lips and the apologetic look, the freckled boy could tell his mate thought it was his fault – since Danny got in trouble for defending him –, when it wasn't really the case. He quickly explained what happened and why his mum had made such a frightful threat, assuring Dougie that he wasn't to blame and he would _"gladly hit that pumpkin head for a friend again"_.

"Good morning, everyone," the ever smiling Ms. Evergreen entered the room bustling with kids. "Sit down, you rabid little bunnies," she demanded in a humorous tone, making the boys and girls giggle, but obeying her nonetheless.

Danny couldn't think of a single person that could dislike Ms. Evergreen. She was always so happy and beautiful, that you would want to smile as soon as you laid your eyes on her. Even though she was young – younger than his mum, anyway –, she treated every single one of his students like they were truly special, and Danny felt like he was lucky enough for having her as a teacher. _"You wanna marry Ms. E!"_ Dougie would tease him, but Danny wouldn't pay him no mind and just get happy whenever he got praised by his teacher. Even if he would usually get himself in some sort of trouble most of the time and be confronted about getting in fights or some other mischief.

"Now that I have your full attention, I have some joyful news today," the teacher surveyed the room, looking at the kids' smiling faces. "It means 'happy' news, Ralph," she chuckled, seeing a little boy with his hand stuck in the air.

A chorus of excited yelps filled the room, as the small people chatted agitatedly among themselves, trying to guess what could be said good news. Soon an avalanche of question buried the young woman's pleas for silence, the kids too ecstatic about something they didn't even have a clue.

Already used to dealing with her 'little bunnies', Ms. Evergreen stuck two of her fingers inside her mouth and wolf whistled using all the air in her lungs. The kids automatically stopped their isolated conversations to look at her with surprised faces, much to her amusement.

"Can anyone guess what I have here?" the teacher rested her hands above a medium sized lump underneath her shirt.

"It's a watermelon!" A boy with dark hair yelled, making some of his classmates laugh and some other roll their eyes.

"It's _not_ a watermelon, Colin. She can't eat something that big," a red-headed girl shook her head. "I think it's a baby, babies come from mums' bellies!"

"Brilliant as always, Alicia," Ms. Evergreen praised her student for some logical thinking. "But that's not a baby, either."

Seeing as they were nowhere closer to figure the mystery, Ms. E reached under her clothes and took out what was 'inside' her belly: a plastic globe with a small rodent inside. The girls mainly made 'aww' sounds, whilst the boys commented on how cool the tuff of fur that resembled a mohawk on the little hamster.

"This is our new mascot, Bo. He's one part of the news I have for you, class," she grinned, showcasing their new pet.

"Can we play with him?"

"I'll get to that point, Chloe. Don't worry." And she settled the globe with Bo on her table, fitting it on a support to not let the plastic sphere roll away. "Now for the second part of the good stuff. You can come in now!"

The doorknob twisted slowly, and a blonde head pipped in. A chubby boy with brown eyes and that looked rather shy entered the room, avoiding all the eyes that were inevitably on him, walking straight to Ms. E's side. Whispers could be heard about who the new kid would be from all over the room, but Danny couldn't pay attention to them, as he was too focused on glaring at the boy who seemed to be too friendly with Ms. E. _His_ Ms. E.

"Bunnies, this is Thomas, your new classmate. I hope you can welcome him warmly," she put her hands on the boy's shoulders, watching him give the class a short, courteous nod.

"I don't like him," Danny whispered to Dougie, eyes never leaving the new kid.

"That's because Ms. E likes him," the blond covered a smirk, but Danny saw it and managed to kick him quickly on the leg. When he turned his attention back to his teacher, he could see the Thomas boy staring back at him for a moment, before lowering his brown eyes to the ground and blushing a bit.

"_Yeah, I don't like him!"_

~#~

Unfortunately to Danny, the other announcements Ms. E had for them were even worse than bringing that other kid into their class: they were assigned in pairs to take care of Bo at their own homes – which would be good, a reason to have Dougie over and play a bit –, only that each pair was randomly chosen, and for such he was stuck with Thomas.

Dougie tried to protest as well, but both ended up agreeing to the scheme suggested by their teacher, unable to say 'no' when the beautiful woman gave them her usual understanding look. Resigned to his unfortunate destiny, Danny turned to glare at his new partner, catching the other boy staring again at him.

"What's wrong with him?" he thought to himself, watching as Thomas averted his gaze and got ears increasingly red. They were just a row apart from each other, the brown-eyed boy taking the spot between Ralph and Colin, who seemed eager to talk to him, although Danny didn't see Thomas reply even once, except for nods and head shakes.

~#~

"It's not so bad, he seems nice," Dougie took a bite of his sandwich, looking to where Danny was staring and then back to his friend. "He's not Craig."

"Not helping, mate," the curly-haired boy sighed, watching Thomas eat by himself. Seemed like Colin had given up on being his mate after he didn't say anything back, and even if Danny didn't like him, it was sad to see somebody like that.

Excusing himself, he walked over to the bench where Thomas was sitting and stopped in front of him. Immediately brown eyes locked with blue ones, and since none of the parts tried to say something, Danny unceremoniously took the empty spot, letting himself plop with a muffled sound.

"You're not making friends if you don't say anything," he bit his sandwich, eyes looking straight ahead to where Dougie was watching him. "Cat got ya tongue?"

Again he was met with silence, but this time Thomas stopped his meal to reach into his pocket, producing a small notepad with a small black and white pen with mickey mouse ears. Danny was about to ask again, when he was handed a short note scribbled in tidy calligraphy that reminded him of Alicia's or Louise's; it was just too _pretty_ to belong to a boy.

_Sorry can't speak I'm mute_

Danny's eyes left the paper to be met with an apologetic, dimpled smile.

~#~

Unbeknown to him, Danny opened up sensibly to Thomas – _"Tom"_, like he said he liked to be called – and they finished their meal together, chatting on the same bench. Dougie looked a bit bummed about being left behind, though he assured Danny that it was completely okay, and that he was glad his mate was trying to make a new friend, to which Danny scoffed, saying he just didn't want things to be strange, as they were going to spend a lot of time together.

"He can't speak? Man, that's bad," Dougie whispered. It didn't seem like Tom was big on revealing his 'secret', so Danny just told his best mate because he knew questions would arise sooner or later.

Their day was finished, and Tom handed Danny a bit of paper with his address, telling him to show up sometime that afternoon and shaking hands with him. Tom's mum arrived not much later and the round faced boy ran into her open arms to give her a tight hug, the small hands clasping around her neck. Danny could see Tom making some gestures that he didn't even understand, but the next thing he saw, was Mrs. Fletcher crouch in front of him with a big smile.

"You must be Danny. Seems like Tom got himself a good friend," the woman spoke softly. She was very beautiful and her hair was the same colour as Tom's. "We'll happily welcome you at our home, just give your mum this number and tell her to call me before she drops you there, okay?"

With a final smile, she walked away, back to where Tom was standing and making their way the car. Tom looked back one last time to bid Danny a bye, holding a see-through box in one of his hands with Bo in it.

~#~

"Mum, why can't some people talk?"

"Where this one come from, Dan?"

"I met this boy and he can't speak. But his mum seems to understand him without reading his notes," he looked at his mother with an astonished expression, making the woman smile at his innocence. "Does she use telephony?"

"_Telepathy_, dear," she chuckled. "And no, I don't think she can use telepathy. Didn't you see them gesturing with their hands?" Danny thought back to when Tom started making this movements with his hand and nodded. "That's how the people who can't speak communicate, it's signal language."

He didn't absorb much of his mother's explanation, but he did get that Tom was cool for using code to speak to his own mum. It was like he was a secret agent speaking a foreign language, and Danny was a big fan of James Bond. Maybe he could get Tom to teach him the spy code?

~#~

"Tom's room is the first door after you climb the stairs, he's finishing bath."

Mrs. Fletcher allowed Danny and his mum inside her house. The two women then went to chat a bit over a mug of tea, whilst their kids played with the hamster and did their homework. They have talked earlier on the phone, but it was always good to get to know the people that will be looking after your kid. You wouldn't want to find them in an alley missing a kidney or anything.

Danny climbed the stairs and knocked on the door that had a big golden star (where it read 'Tom') pinned to it. After not hearing anything and slapping himself on the forehead – it wasn't like the other boy could tell him to 'come in' –, he twisted the doorknob slowly, entering a blue room nicely decorated.

The ceiling was painted like the sky, and there was a shelf that was actually Hercules holding books above his head and a Mickey Mouse clock on the bedside table near a Ghostbusters night light. It seemed like Tom had a thing for Disney stuff, but he also liked one of Danny's favourite films, so he was cool with that.

"Hi," he smiled, realising Tom had entered the room. His hair was a bit dump and spiked in different directions. Tom smiled back and closed the gap between then with a hug that caught Danny off guard, going over to his uniform to fetch his notepad.

_Good you come mate Want to do homework now?_

"Do you really like studying? You're weird," Danny laughed.

_Hey! :S This way we can play with Bo for more time :P_

"Okay, maybe you're just smart."

_We need someone smart in this team_

"I'll just ignore that," he frowned, making them both laugh. Danny took his backpack off, rummaging through its contents for everything they would use.

~#~

"Boys, snack time!" Mrs. Fletcher voice could be heard from downstairs, the boys' heads snapping up at the prosperity of getting some food into their bellies. They had long finished their obligations and were now reading the instructions of "How to Take Care of a Hamster" that Ms. E had handed each of them.

"I'm not really hungry, we could–"

Danny's face went red, as his stomach decided to betray him with a loud noise that seemed much like a dying walrus roaring in tremendous pain. Tom laughed so hard that he cried a bit, but just shook his head and grabbed Danny's hand before dragging the blue-eyed boy with him.

"Since it's the first you come here, I don't really know what you like," the sweet woman stated, looking at Danny. "I hope you like the same things as Tom."

"Thank you, Mrs. Fletcher!"

"You're welcome, darling," she left the room, but stayed watching the boys interact from afar. She actually couldn't remember the last time she saw Tom that happy, acting carefree and being completely silly. Tom tried to feed Danny but ended up smearing his face with strawberry jam and they guffawed again, a vision that made his mother a bit tear eyed.

~#~

"Bye, Mrs. Fletcher! Bye, Tom! Tomorrow at my house, okay?" Danny kissed the blonde's cheek and hugged her son, before jolting back to his mum, who awaited him in the car.

"Did you have fun?" Mrs. Jones asked him, seeing how her son radiated happiness.

"Tom and his mum are ace!" He replied excitedly, bouncing on his seat. "She's going to teach me spy language, too! Look!" The freckled tiny face disappeared behind a copy of "Sign Language for Kids" he had in his hands.

"I'm so happy for you, dear," she smiled at her grinning son, glad that he had made through the whole day without getting himself into a fight or any other misbehaviour.

~#~

"I thought you didn't like him," Dougie looked at his best friend sceptically, raising an eyebrow.

"He's very cool," Danny shrugged. "His mum is too, and she's going to teach me spy language!"

"Poor Tom's mum. Good luck with that..."

"Hey!" Danny tried to grab the blond in a headlock, both laughing heartily.

~#~

The week flew by at outstanding speed, and before both boys knew it, Friday had already arrived. Tom and Danny were now extremely good friends, and it seemed that the former's influence over the latter was working wonders, as Mrs. Jones spent a whole week without being summoned because of something Danny did. His influence on Tom was also visible, as he started getting more comfortable around his other classmates. Even then, his best mate would forever be Danny, and Dougie would follow next as the closest person he knew.

For the last time whilst they took care of Bo, Danny found himself in front of the Fletcher household, knocking on the door with everlasting energy. From inside the house the noise of feet stomping their way could be heard, and it didn't take long for the door to unlock and fly open, revealing a smiling Tom wearing a shirt with dalmatian pattern.

Tom made some gestures to which Danny responded to some of his own. He looked expectantly at the chubby boy for a few moments, but sighed in relief upon receiving a 'thumbs up' sign, both grinning at each other like dwarf-sized loons. It wasn't until Mrs. Fletcher cleared her throat behind them, that they finally got inside, zooming their way back to Tom's room.

_Mum said we can play after homework_

"She's the best mum I know!" Danny did a little victory dance, shaking his fists in the air.

_Danny you have a mum too_

"Don't tell her I said that," they giggled like the schoolboys they were, and proceeded to get homework done and over with.

They took some more time than usual, since Ms. Evergreen enjoyed making her 'little people' work an extra bit on the weekends, but completed their task. Mrs. Fletcher then allowed them to play until Danny's mum showed up to pick him up, and checking their answers for a last time, gave them her approval, watching fondly as they scampered away hand in hand.

A few hours later, Mrs. Jones rang the door bell looking exhausted, her hair a bit messy from a tiresome day. She apologised for being late, explaining how she got stuck in a traffic jam after a car crash and her phone died on her. Always understanding, Mrs. Fletcher invited the other woman for a mug of tea, and relax a bit whilst the kids finished their game.

"Thank you for letting Dan come here often. He's such a wonderful influence on my Thomas," she rested a tray with two mugs on the coffee table, taking on into her own hands.

"Never thought I would hear about Danny being a good influence on anybody, but thanks!" Mrs. Jones laughed, and it was almost as contagious as when her son did the same. "Tom is just wonderful, too. A whole week without a single complaint from school about my boy."

Their chat went on and on, passing various subjects, like when they first heard about being pregnant, the earlier years with babies, etc. The two seemed to have a lot in common, and it wouldn't strange if they turned out to be great friends like their kids. It was only when the subject of Tom's muteness was brought up, that Mrs. Fletcher's spirit seemed to falter a bit.

"It's okay if you don't want to talk about it," Mrs. Jones offered a sympathetic smile.

"No, it's fine, honey. Actually, Tom's muteness is a psychological thing."

"What? You mean he can speak?"

A long narrative on how Tom saw his grandpa be shot to death (and was in shock for an extended time) made Danny's mum heart clench. Such a sweet and innocent soul already had witnessed such a brutal crime up close, no wonder he lost his speech capabilities. The thought made Mrs. Jones sick and she tried her best to keep the tears from falling, meaning to remain strong for her friend.

"That's why we moved here. Doctors said that a change of scenario could speed up his recovery and he would eventually regain his speech but–"

"It's taking longer than expected, right?"

"Yeah," the blonde nodded, wiping some furtive tears from her eyes. "But enough of this sad talk! Let's go fetch your little man," she forced a smiled and motioned for Mrs. Jones to follow her.

When they got to the room the boys were in, they saw a scene that made them smile. The little boys were asleep in bed, Tom's head resting on Danny's shoulder, and Danny's drooling with his mouth half open and head tilted back. The kids also got a book open over and across their laps; they probably drifted slowly whilst reading it.

"Oh, Dan!" his mum chuckled, feeling a bit embarrassed and watching the adorable scene. "I feel bad for having to wake them."

"We don't have to, he can always sleep here," Mrs. Fletcher entered the room and proceeded to tuck the asleep pair comfortably, putting their book away. The adults finally came to an agreement, and Tom could then sleep at Danny's, if he so desired the next day.

~#~

Months passed, and Tom and Danny were now inseparable. Some of his classmates – mainly Craig and a few others – would say they were 'boyfriends' because they always did everything together, but Danny didn't care. He was happy with his friend, and he had had success on controlling his temper and even got complimented on by Ms. E; he couldn't be more happy or care less about those silly egg heads!

"Mum, what is love?" he asked one day when they were eating breakfast.

"What is love? Baby, don't hurt me. Don't hurt me. No more!"

"Mum, I'm serious!" the little boy pouted.

"Sorry, you know how much I like this song," she cleared her throat before speaking again. "Love is when you really care about someone and doesn't want anything bad to happen to them."

"That means you love me," he stated more than asked.

"You bet," she bopped his nose with her index finger, eliciting some giggles.

"Then I love Tom, too!"

The statement surprised her – and she wasn't sure he really knew what he meant by that –, but for some reason wasn't really a shock or anything. If the boys ever grew to be each other's significant other, she would be more than okay with that. A smile then crept on Mrs. Jones' face, her features softening with kindness as she kissed atop her son's head.

"I know you do, dear. I know you do."

~#~

_I'm going away Dan :'(_

"Why?" Danny expression mirrored Tom's, both looking sad and even a bit miserable.

Tom's dad accepted an offer to work in another country and the Fletchers would have to move away. Of course, all that Tom knew was "we have to move because of Dad's work", but that was the very gist of the situation.

_We're going tomorrow :(_

~#~

The next day was dreaded by everyone at Tom's and Danny's. The two families really got along over the course of the months after they met, and now saying goodbye proved overly difficult. Tom was sobbing uncontrollably, being hugged by Dougie and Danny, who were also crying. Their parents were at some distance also saying their goodbyes and watching the kids cry with their hearts constricted.

Tom finally let go of his friends and intently watched Danny fumble with something inside his pockets, fishing a small box from it. He opened the square object and took out two rings hanging from necklaces that were just too long for kids.

"Mum got me these. They're promise rings, she said," Danny explained to a bewildered Tom. "We meet here again later, okay?"

Tom nodded as he whipped his tears, swallowing a lump in his throat. Danny put one necklace around his neck, and kept the other to himself, hugging Tom when he was finished. In the hug they started crying again, though this time Danny tried to stay strong for both.

"I love you, Tom," he said, squeezing his friend ever so tightly.

"D- Dan–" Danny broke their hug to look at Tom's eyes. It was faint – hardly audible –, but he couldn't be mistaken.

Then it happened again and it sounded awfully like 'love you'. Tom's parents launched themselves at their son, crying and kissing him. Mrs. Jones crouched to hug both Danny and Dougie, watching the touching scene in front of them.

With that, the Fletchers finally left, their plane gaining altitude, soaring through the skies and taking them to a new life. Back on the ground, Danny, his mum and his mate, bid their friends farewell. He grabbed the ring dangling from his neck – 'Dan & Tom' inscribed on the inside along with a rendezvous set 15 years in the future – , remembering the sloppy kiss on the cheek Tom gave him before leaving. He was sure they would meet again, and that both of their lives would no more be filled with silence.

~Fin~


End file.
